Pier Table

Replica pier table

Pier Table

The first replica Chippendale marquetry table was made by John Apps and I for entry into our Marquetry Course book in 2003. John built the table, leaving me to decorate the plinth and top. We decided to simplify the marquetry by using softer and easier woods to work with, so that future students wanting to build it did not have to work with the difficult tropical hardwoods used by the originator. These included; satinwood and tulipwood, so in their place we used figured maple and sapele for the cross banding borders. Dyed and un-dyed sycamore was used for the marquetry elements. The table spent five years at Harewood House, because the curatorial team at the time thought it was an appropriate replica to let the visiting public to see, at close quarters, how Chippendale’s marquetry was built. I made a video for visitors to watch during their visit, showing different stages of construction. The table was returned to me in 2008. The green dyed veneers used for the swags of laurel leaves are still as vibrant in colour today, some twelve years on. This is because I used dyed veneers processed in Milan by a company who claim that their dyes are both colourfast and lightfast. Only time will tell, but so far that is true.